Karate Info.

I've heard a few people mention Tiger Schulman for karate.

Are you determined that it must be Karate? If not, I have to excellent alternatives.

Quest Martial Arts (tampaquestma.com) ###-###-#### at 15049 Bruce B. Downs has a Little Dragons class Mondays and Wednesdays at 6. This place is amazing - the instructors are positive, the students are helpful to each other, and the Little Dragons class looks like even more fun than the adult classes. My (16 year old)daughter started training there last year and it has done her a lot of good. So much that her father and I are also training there. If you do sign up your son, prepare to be hooked and start training yourself - they're that good. The martial art is to-shin-do, which is a lot easier on your body than Karate but will still help channel all that energy. Highly, highly, recommended. If self-defense is a concern for you or your son, to-shin-do is likely far more effective for your son and definitely the way to go for us adults!

My children needed their own separate martial arts areas, so I can also highly recommend Martial Arts Advantage (14214 N. Nebraska Ave, and also a site on Manhattan in South Tampa). My son is 13, and has enjoyed and benefited from training in both tae-kwan-do (a nice aerobic workout, and the discipline of learning patterned movement - it also helped his baseball game, simply by improved body mechanics) and Hagganah, a somewhat rough on the body but highly effective self-defense strategy. I don't know their Little Dragons program, but they do a good job with the younger students in their youth classes and the instructors are alert and care about the students.

You really can't go wrong with either of these. I was a martial arts skeptic for many years, but now I recommend that you sign up as soon as possible (yes, you and your son).

You didn't give your location, but my son goes to Karate in Tarpon Springs and it's been a really good program for him. Sergio Haritos is the Master, it's on US 19 and Tarpon Avenue, it's also connected to Tarpon Gymnastics. Good luck! He'll have a good time no matter which place you choose, mine loves it!

Hi S.-
The Purple Dragon is the best, they are ranked in the top 10 internationally. My son who just turned 4 July 1st has been going for 6 months and he loves it. So much that his class twice a week wasn't enough so I put him in the after school care program. They teach them different types of martial arts, stranger danger and self dicipline. They have two locations, the one we attend is in Temple Terrace on 56th Street and there is also a Palm Harbor location. They have classes for every age group, I have been going to the women's kick boxing class for 3 years. The instructors are very nice and extremely informative. Their phone number is ###-###-#### - Hope find a great place for your son.